Effects of Community Water Fluoridation on Dental Caries Disparities in Adolescents.

ABSTRACT: Despite improvements in the prevalence of dental caries, disparities are still observed globally and in the U.S. This study examined whether community water fluoridation (CWF) reduced dental caries disparities in permanent teeth of 10- to 19-year-old schoolchildren in North Carolina. We used cross-sectional data representing K-12 schoolchildren in North Carolina (NC) public schools. A poisson regression model was used to determine whether the association between children's parental educational attainment and the prevalence of dental caries of children differed by children's lifetime CWF exposure. We analyzed data on 2075 students. Among the children without any CWF exposure in their life, statistically significant caries disparities by parental educational attainment were observed. Compare

SUBMITTER: Matsuo G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7175225 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature